This invention relates to an antenna. More particularly it relates to an antenna with a stripline feed.
Antennas generally have one or more radiator elements which are separated from a conductive ground plane by means of one or more layers of a dielectric substrate. Where the antenna is provided with a stripline feed for the radiator elements, the ground-plane serves as an upper ground plane for the stripline, there being a further conductive ground plane below the level of the upper ground plane. The stripline is between the upper and lower ground planes and is separated therefrom by layers of dielectric substrate which are at a level below that of the upper ground plane. In comparison with a microstrip feed, a stripline feed offers the advantage of no feed radiation and lower loss, but at the cost of higher complexity of the structure.
The most common method of making such antennas involves the use of photolithographic or etching techniques on thin copper sheets laminated on microwave substrate materials. Shorting pins which extend through holes in the upper ground plane are used to connect the feed to the radiator elements. The need in this construction for substrate layers below the level of the upper ground plane adds to the overall thickness of the antenna, and there are often limitations on the maximum thickness that is commercially acceptable.
It is an object of the invention to provide an antenna construction in which more efficient use is made of the available volume, and which makes use of low cost and, in the case of the dielectric material, low loss materials, which can be die-cut with sufficient accuracy to enable repeatable high volume assembly.
According to one aspect of the invention there is provided an array antenna which comprises:
an array of radiator elements;
a stripline feed for the radiator elements;
a metal component which includes a first portion having an upwardly facing surface at a first level, and a second portion having a downwardly facing surface at a second level, the radiator elements being above the first portion, the second level being higher than the first level, and the stripline feed being at a third level between the first and second levels.
The metal component may be in the form of a metal sheet which is shaped to form said first portion, said second portion, and an intermediate portion which extends from the first portion to the second portion.
The metal sheet may be of an un-annealed aluminium.
The metal sheet may be formed by pressing, in a deep drawing tool.
There may, in respect of each of the radiator elements, be an opening in the intermediate portion, the stripline feed having an extension which passes through the opening to the respective radiator element.
Said second portion may be between a pair of said radiator elements, there being a said first portion and a said intermediate portion on each opposite side of the second portion, thereby to form a channel in the underside of the metal sheet, the stripline feed being in the channel.
The antenna may further comprise a sheet of conductive foil which extends across the channel on the underside of the metal sheet, said second portion forming an upper ground plane for the stripline feed and said sheet of conductive foil forming a lower ground plane for the stripline feed.
Said sheet of conductive foil may have opposite edge portions which overlie and are adhesively secured to the underside of the respective first portions.
Each radiator element may be separated from said first portion by a spacer element which is of an extruded plastics material having a cellular configuration in cross-section.
The stripline feed may be held between spacer strips which are of an extruded plastics material having a cellular configuration in cross-section.
According to another aspect of the invention there is provided an array antenna which comprises:
a metal sheet having an upper side and a lower side;
an array of radiator elements on the upper side of the metal sheet, each radiator element being separated from the metal sheet by a spacer element of dielectric material; and
a stripline feed for the radiator elements, the stripline feed being on the lower side of the metal sheet;
the metal sheet being shaped to have a first portion which is at a low level, a second portion which is at a high level, and an intermediate portion which extends from the first portion to the second portion; and
the arrangement of the radiator elements and the stripline feed in relation to the metal sheet being such that said first portion forms a ground plane for the radiator elements, and said second portion forms an upper ground plane for the stripline feed.
The invention will now be described in more detail, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying diagrammatic drawings.